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News Briefs August 30, 2013

Undergrad flying training applications due in Nov.

Eligible active duty officers interested in undergraduate flying training must apply by Nov. 29 to be considered by the UFT selection board, which convenes Jan. 14, Air Force Personnel Center officials said.

The board will review candidates for fiscal year 2014/2015 training requirements in the pilot, remotely piloted aircraft, combat systems officer and air battle manager categories.

Applicants must meet age and commission date criteria — born April 1, 1984 or later and total federal service commissioned date after April 1, 2009 — and must have squadron commander or equivalent endorsement, said Maj. Andrew Larson, AFPC assignments officer.

“Commanders who support applicants competing on this board must agree to release their officers for short-notice assignments as early as April 2014,” he said. “In addition, applicants selected for pilot training, to include RPA pilots, must attend medical flight screening prior to entry into Initial Flight Screening or RPA Flight Screening.”

Applicants must complete the Air Force Form 215, Aircrew Training Candidate Data Summary, and email completed, endorsed packages to the personnel center by Nov. 29.

Curriculum policy changes new DODEA school year

Defense Department Education Activity students, parents and employees should expect quite a few changes in the upcoming school year, the DODEA director said in an Aug. 23 interview.

Those changes will be both visible and behind the scenes, but they all are geared toward improving the quality of education at DODEA schools, Marilee Fitzgerald told American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel.

This year, every teacher, leader and school support staff member will have a new blueprint — the community strategic plan — for advancing students to higher levels of learning, Fitzgerald said.

New digital curricula and updated building designs are a part of the reforms covered by the plan, Fitzgerald said, noting that the Community Strategic Plan “sets some very rigorous targets for learning in our schools.”

Every Airman matters, each story important

There are more than 690,000 Airmen serving in the U.S. Air Force, and according to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh III, each one is critical to the Air Force mission and each one has a story to tell.

As outlined in the Air Force vision, “every Airman, regardless of specialty, must understand and be able to explain how they contribute to producing unparalleled airpower for our nation. Each Airman has a compelling story that needs to be told. Tell your story. Let your fellow Americans know that their Air Force provides Global Vigilance, Global Reach, and Global Power to defend our great nation. Airmen should be proud of who they are, what they do, and how well they accomplish the mission.”

Airmen can explain their role in producing airpower for America by emailing their story to YourAFstory@pentagon.af.mil.

The “Global Vigilance, Global Reach, Global Power for America,” document explains how the Air Force provides airpower for America and further, how Airmen directly power the Air Force’s core missions and airpower capabilities.

ASVAB pretest available online for applicants

Thanks to a new program, applicants who hope to join the Air Force can now take the Armed Services Aptitude Battery pretest from any computer with Internet access.

The prescreening, Internet-delivered computer adaptive test is an unproctored version of the full ASVAB that currently provides recruiters with the ability to effectively determine if an applicant is qualified before sending them to a military entrance processing station or military entrance test site.

Air Force Recruiting Service currently has 260 recruiters authorized to register applicants and is working with U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command to register all Air Force recruiters.

“Currently, about 1,100 recruiters from all the services have code issuing authority,” said Gaylan Johnson, a U.S. MEPCOM public affairs officer.

Recruiters will provide applicants with a unique access code. The applicant must start the test within 72 hours. Once the test is started, he or she will have 24 hours to complete the test. After the test is complete, the recruiter will have the ability to instantly view the applicant’s score.

By taking the PiCAT, an applicant will gain familiarity with the ASVAB and recruiters will be able to determine whether or not applicants will achieve qualifying scores on the official test.

Local Military Discounts

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